X (2022)

It's been nearly a decade since Ti West's last full-fledged horror outing, 2013's The Sacrament. How unfortunate, then, that it wasn't particularly good. His approach to horror is generally very direct and uncomplicated. It's the style and intelligence with which he wields these sturdy horror tropes that makes all the difference. Let's call him a thinking man's Eli Roth in the sense that he's willing to subvert audience expectations and shock at every turn with that familiar sort of post-modern horror savvy, but yet is crucially less concerned with dumb humor and much less uncomfortable with killing people who don't "deserve it" in some way, be it thanks to their stupidity, vanity, curiosity, being too rich, etc. No sir, Ti West writes believable characters that illicit sympathy before throwing them to the wolves and forcing us to watch them be ripped apart. 

The Innkeepers, his last great film, also had more going on thematically than we were used to seeing from him, so it was quite disappointing that we were left with 2013's The Sacrament as a swan song to his brilliant career as a horror auteur. Many of us wondered what on earth had happened: was he in ailing health? Dead? Canceled? And when you searched for news related to him, Google always came up empty... alright, alright he did do some episodes of a few TV shows, a western starring Ethan Hawke, not to mention a few horror shorts, but still. To us horror fans, he more or less dropped off the map.

Fast forward to now, and his first film in nearly a decade is here and able to be watched in any format of your choosing and I'm here to tell you why it's a must-watch for any fan of true horror cinema. X will make you queasy and uncomfortable, like any true horror film should. It's honestly more than a little sickening, and not just in the usual grindhouse sense of being gory, though it is that as well. This isn't something totally new like Titane, another film I had the pleasure of seeing this year, though it does at least feel new. I went in with high expectations, and I saw them met again and again and then some. In fact, I think this may be West's best film yet, though it's just about neck-and-neck with The Innkeepers, a much different sort of horror film. X isn't some deep, convoluted narrative that sprawls over two hours or an entire season of a TV show. This is a slasher film, the kind you could totally buy as a forgotten artifact of seventies grindhouse cinema, if only there were more hairs in the gate. 

Our narrative is set right at the tail end of the bleak '70s, during the boom in demand for high-quality porn, and its resident band of innocent victims marked for slaughter are a band of misfits composed of all sorts: an ultra-chill Vietnam vet, doped up teenagers, porno queens, and scummy producers. Their mission: to film a porno on the cheap, get it distributed, and cash in on the gold rush while the iron is still hot. To this end, the leader of this group, the aforementioned aged scuzzy producer man, decides to nix going through the proper channels and making the proper arrangements, instead answering an ad in the local papers offering room and board at a rural farmhouse, for the price of $30 flat. Needless to say, the absurdly elderly couple the group meets when they arrive to do their business doesn't know what they mean to use the cabin for, and beyond that, are quite alarmingly unnerving and suspicious-acting characters. The wife stays locked away, usually out of sight but occasionally glimpsed looking out of her window. Her husband, Howard, does most of the talking, and not with his mouth either. His introduction features him pulling a gun on Wayne, the scummy producer, when the latter approaches and knocks on the door. "You from the county?" spits Howard. For a moment, especially if you're familiar with the director's previous work, you might honestly be wondering if this old man really is going to just blow this poor idiot's brains all over his front porch in the first half hour of the film, but luckily for Wayne, Howard suddenly remembers speaking with him and brushes off the threat as a bluff. Sure, pal, sure. Hey, maybe we should just go? Like, right now. Guys?

Only they don't. And when their hosts discover what they're up to in their home, things quickly spiral out of control.

First off, I like the simple framing device for the story, especially the way it's paid off at the end. It's an old trick, but still around and used for a reason: it helps build expectation and anticipation, and thus suspense. I like the flow of the dialogue and the sense of humor with which it was conceived. Understated, but charismatic. And seriously intelligent. Don't let the inclusion of Kid Cudi make you think this is some low-budget and/or low-effort stoner horror film or anything like that. There are more film nerd jokes here than anything.

But most of all, I like that the characters have elements of both good and bad in them. They aren't simple caricatures, but they aren't the absurdly innocent bystanders from David Gordon Green's recent reinterpretations of the Halloween franchise either. They're well-rounded, balanced, and grounded.: Human. You don't want them to die, your heart drops when they eventually do, and the images of their gruesome demises will likely haunt your nightmares for some time to come. Have fun!

Yes, I won't lie; it's often hard to stomach. Grotesque, harrowing, perverted, you name it. Is it often in poor taste? You better believe it, cowboy. Is it entertaining? Well, yes, in the sense that all good horror is entertaining, but this sucker has some scenes that rank with some of the most uncomfortable I've ever witnessed. Its interplay of sex and violence, of young bodies grinding on one another juxtaposed against almost comically old ones doing the same: it's exactly not pleasant. So don't watch it while eating, or with your inlaws... or with a potential partner. Unless they're into that, in which case: close the book, she's a keeper.

The film is Ti West's strongest film technically, and the most refined example of his Tarantino-esque style of low-budget horror filmmaking. Despite the rootsy approach to its familiar narrative, it has many fascinating touches that can only be described as 'auteur:' the imaginative framing of the gothic Texan landscape, the use of the 'blinking' scene transitions from 1969's Easy Rider, as well as a few era-appropriate wipes, the emphasis on snap zooms over dolly shots, the unconventional editing that at one point tacks the end of a gory death scene onto the end of an unrelated, quiet one as both a jolt and effective scene transition, the effective use of De Palma-inspired split-screen, and of course, the constant visual nods to the masters of the genre that came before.

Presentation-wise, it certainly looks the part of a vintage horror film, but it still possesses color and warmth visually, at least early on. The costuming helps out a lot with this. And you get a great sense of the time and place the film takes place in, both in that sense and the sense of the wonderful use of licensed era-appropriate pop tunes, another thing the film has in common with the best works of Tarantino. THe opening shot actually briefly fooled me into thinking it was shot in 4:3, like many old films or, especially, low-budget ones using whatever they could get their hands on. Turns out it was actually just smart cinematography, which frames the wide open Texan panorama inside a pair of ajar barn doors. Subtle, and quite nerdy, I know, but I appreciated it at least. And the actual original score for the film? Holy shit, dude; it's unbelievably striking considering it's minimal instrumentation that consists of nought but very occaisonal solo piano, dischordant noise, and most prominently, the haunting vocals of a Ms. Chelsea Wolfe, layered endlessly to produce both awe-inspiring and hair-raising results. 

Now is where I get into spoilers for those of you who have been enticed to watch the film for yourself. So those of you who haven't seen it and wish to, leave now and come back when have. I'll wait. And those who don't care either way can just ignore this whole paragraph, really. 

But anyway, getting back to the narrative, I'd like to go into a little more detail about what I mentioned earlier: the part about the characters having a certain depth and humanity about them. How about this for a group of doomed nomadic opportunists: there's Wayne, the middle-aged sleazebag who both courts and farms out his girlfriend, Maxime "Minx," a much-younger girl with dreams of becoming a star or "fucking sex symbol" as she puts it. He should be a cut-and-dry character, right? Well, he's never outright abusive, his history with his actors and actresses suggests the man pays his talent well, and rather than framing it as exploitation, the film actually highlights the progressive qualities of a man who is comfortable with watching his girlfriend get ravished on-camera as long as it 'means nothing.' Perhaps it's just because he's getting up there in age, a common refrain in this film and the kernel of the idea around which the entire story is based, but it's never made clear.

Then there's Jackson "Hole," a fit and obviously well-endowed man who acts as the male lead in the porno. Again, simple, right? Dumb as a bag of hammers, narcissistic, overly masculine; the archetype is only too obvious. Except it isn't so simple: Jackson's a veteran of the Vietnam war, he doesn't do blow as far as I could gather, he's a solid guitar player, he's always calm, cool, collected and in control of the situation, and most importantly, he's always willing to help out wherever help is required. And that's exactly what gets him killed in the end. He's an admirable character, all things considered, and written so as to be a presence you miss once he's gone and the group is left without their pillar of zen.

Bobby-Lynn, his co-star, a much more experienced porn actress than young Maxine, is even more surprising. She's brash, aggressive, sexually free, and takes pride in her looks. And yet she, like Jackson, can't help but stop to help a poor old person in need. After all, she's dealt with confused elderly relatives before. At one point, we're told, she was seriously considering becoming a nurse before her porn career took off. Not quite the typical 'alpha bitch' stereotype, am I right? Too bad she's graphically torn apart only seconds after attempting to lend a helping hand, similarly to many of her friends.

RJ, the director of their little 'independent film,' is probably the least sympathetic, honestly. Self-absorbed and typically beset by delusions of grandeur that seem to distract him from the essence of what he's making, he seeks to give the porno, which I'll remind you is entitled The Farmer's Daughter, "a sense of the avant-garde" just in case you didn't know quite the type of delusion to which I was referring. In the end, he gets his comeuppance for dragging his sheltered girlfriend, Lorraine, along to make smut.

And speaking of Lorraine, she feels uncomfortable and out of place at first, but becomes very enthusiastic after witnessing the filming of the first actual sex scene. She begins to question Wayne about his feelings when it comes to watching his girlfriend act out her scenes with another man, and the next thing you know, she's using RJ's own words about the morality of porn against him and asking if she can be the next to film a scene. She does come across as a little callous and cruel (or incredibly naive) to suddenly throw aside all notions of monogamy and expect her boyfriend to be okay with it, but it's satisfying and twisted nonetheless. It's probably a good thing she got to have a little fun though, because she ends up in the grips of utter depravity and painful mutilation by that same night's end.

Finally, there's our lead, the aforementioned Maxine Minx. Dying to become a star, she's on a war path and will get what she wants by any means necessary. Her backstory is initially left unclear, but as the film goes on, we soon learn where she comes from and why she is the way she is, and it only serves to make her an even more badass final girl.

But lest you think all that depth and humanity is limited only to our leads, rest assured the antagonists of the film, two terrifying elderly murderers, possess far more of both than ninety-nine percent of horror movie villains. Pearl, the fragile wife, acts as a perfect foil for Maxine. She's a woman who is implied to have once been a beautiful young woman with all the promise in the world, poised to become a star, only for it all to be taken from her in some fashion that's never specified and so she's "gone off the reservation" so to speak. She becomes especially upset when surrounded by hot young bods grinding against one another, and by upset I mean, *gasp* turned on. Oh yes, the only thing worse than your ancient hosts discovering you're making a porno and flying into a rage, is one of them actually being kind of into it and hoping to join in. Witnessing the debauchery awakens a violent sexual craving in Pearl, despite her advanced age, and when can't get it from either her weak-of-heart husband or a young straggler attempting to leave the property, she becomes Jack the Ripper and stab-stab-stabs into young, healthy flesh until she's covered in innocent blood. And somehow, we understand her. She's sexually frustrated and clearly derives an illicit thrill from her violent skewering of RJ. But despite her humanity, what she does to our leads is so viscous and cruel that she never becomes more sympathetic than the young folk that serve as her spurty victims, which keeps things distinctly stomach-churning.

I like the way Pearl and her hubby's backstories are only vaguely filled in, which has the benefit of never detracting from their mystery and power. The little hints that they've been killed before, the way Howard reacts when he mistakes Wayne for someone "from the county," and let's not forget the 'plaything' strung up in the basement with an absurdly large penis. It's all there for attentive viewers. You get all you need to know without ever indulging in exposition that might otherwise rob the film and its villains of their mystery. Then there are the fascinating little touches to Pearl's character that give fuel to the imagination about what exactly is wrong with her. That moment where she childishly places a thin layer of straw over Wayne to 'conceal' his corpse in the barn, anyone? How about dancing to music only she can hear, while drenched in the warm blood of her latest victim?

In terms of raw horror and thrills, this film has it all. It's got subtle horror, like the way the porn scenes slowly transform into something altogether more horrible as they go on, and that spooky scene of Jackson wading through alligator-infested waters looking for a missing Howard. How about that scene of Maxine nearly getting eaten by an alligator herself while idly swimming just off the couple's pier that sets up a later death? Talk about high-octane dramatic irony.

But then there's the hard stuff. Lorraine pulling what I like to call a "reverse Nicolson" aka using an axe to break through a door just enough to unlock it, only to have her emerging fingers mutilated horribly by Howard with a knife. So bad, in fact, that her bones are showing after the fact. Add to that her cruel, callous death scene, one of the more humiliating in the film, where she blames everything that's happening on Maxine and her morally-corrupting friends, disavowing her role in the film and running from the house screaming "I HATE YOU!" before having half of her face blown off by a sudden shotgun blast. So for those that seem to believe the film was on Lorraine's side when she up and decided to get more "involved" in the project, there you go.

I've already discussed RJ's extremely gruesome throat-stabbing death, by what I didn't mention is its placement: it's the first onscreen death in the film and it comes nearly one hour into this hour and forty-ish minute film. The gore here is both disturbingly realistic and cartoonishly drawn out. Like the first blood spilled in Ti West's House of the Devil, it's an effective and quite alarming announcement of intent. If you thought this would be some subtle reinvention of horror tropes, think again. We're playing the hits, baby, only more viscerally and more provocatively than ever before.

Speaking of which, Bobby-Lynn's death may be the most disturbing of them all. After displaying kindness towards Pearl, she's pushed into the alligator waters and shredded up like a head of messy red lettuce, and we get to watch in agonizing detail as her flailing and screaming becomes fainter, fainter, and then stops. It's awful, and the kind of thing that's likely to stick with you after the film is over. Please, for the love of god, don't let any small children glimpse this shit. They'd never sleep again.

And while Wayne's death is less over-the-top than the ones I just noted, it's still fairly gruesome, and delicately composed from a filmmaking perspective. First, he steps on a nail in the barn, and after giving his position away, has his eyes impaled and yanked out of his skull by Pearl, armed with a pitchfork. And again, as with every death in the film besides Lorraine's, it comes as a result of the character trying to be a pal and locate the then-missing RJ for a worried Lorraine. Hell, RJ only dies because he steps out of his car and tries to get Pearl her to move out of the way instead of, you know, just running her over or even just honking at her. Jackson suffers the same fate as well when he splits off with Wayne to go 'searching for Pearl' which is really just a trap to take him out away from all the others. His death isn't very imaginative or surprising, but even setting that aside, this film has a multitude of creative and memorable kills. It's the stuff of slasher legends.

I like the absurdly bloody finale, where the bodies literally become stacked in the front doorway. After murdering her with his trusty double-barrelled shotgun, Howard gets his comeuppance when his weak heart gives out thanks to a dying Lorraine suddenly coughing up blood before just breathing her last. Then Pearl finally gets hers after attempting to shoot Maxine with the very same shotgun, which promptly blows her out the front door, down the stairs, and onto the hard soil below, breaking her hip and leaving her defenseless for Maxine to deal with as she sees fit. It's almost Shakespearian. We're left with just a few lingering questions about where Maxine will go and what she will do after this, though there's always the possibility she will suffer the same fate as Pearl, but that's pretty much it. Roll credits.

Before I wrap this absurdly long analysis up, I just want to address the old age makeup and prosthetics work seen throughout the film. Between this and Mike Flannigan's brilliant Midnight Mass miniseries, I'm noticing a trend of this kind of solution being used more and more, and more convincingly than in a fair few prior films. Here, it's used presumably more for thematic reasons, although it's also likely because of the prequel film that is due for home video release any day now. Mia Goth does an incredible job in her role as Maxine, as do all of the actors really, even Mescudi. But Goth's turn as the ancient Pearl is especially god-tier work. Sure, it's obvious enough that it's not a real old person, seeing as her mouth barely moves, and her face barely animates, but still: it works, and illustrates the fear of ending up old and decrepit quite well when she's acting alongside herself as both a young hot-blooded woman with her whole life in front of her and a washed-up, dried-out, insane victim of the Hollywood system.

And that's just about it folks. Seeing as everyone reading by now should have seen the movie, there's no point in entertaining the idea of whether or not I recommend this film. Of course I do. It's stellar horror filmmaking, if admittedly treading familiar ground. It flips the script on us with a raunchy and steamy first half full of naked young bodies and simulated sex between fit young people, only to have the backhalf be filled with nothing but sickening graphic violence and simulated sex between very old people. It's something, that's for sure, and guaranteed to spark conversation. Technically, it's imaginative yet slick; auteur yet perfectly commercial, besides the whole 'sickening sex and violence' thing. In the end, it delivered on everything I expected given my love of previous horror films from Ti West, and that's all I could ever ask.